Vacationing With Fear
by A. G. Moria
Summary: Edward Nigma is trying to relax on his vacation, however an unforeseen obstacle puts an end to his plan. And what obstacle could this be? Well, whom else than Jonathan Crane! This is a CraneXNigma story, slash, malexmale, so incase that doesn't interest you, you are now warned.
1. Chapter 1

**Yeah, yeah, this is a short chapter story about Nigma and Crane, it is a story that grew a lot longer than I originally intended... Luckily for me it was fun to write with these two characters.**

**So with that said and done, here's the story.**

* * *

Edward Nigma paced restlessly back and forth in a luxurious hotel room situated on the 13th floor of a skyscraper on the west side of Gotham City.

The room was rather sparsely decorated, just the way Edward preferred it, but the few pieces of furniture on display were spot on and top class. Of course, the one room the man found himself in at the moment was not the only room of the suit he had booked, however he found it unnecessary to utilize any other room, as these served no purpose at the given moment.

The floor was a newly polished parquet floor and the overall color scheme of the room consisted mostly of nuances of dark greens and black outline, however some whites and pale yellows were detectable as well. The walls were stripped from all sorts of decorative, giving room to three pompous windows. The windows, big windows that would normally let in an abundance of light, were covered with heavy drapes dyed a calming evergreen color. The drapery effectively stopped the sun from shining into the room, making it remarkably dimmer than it would be normally.

The floor had upon Nigma's arrival been covered with a beautiful Persian carpet colored a vibrant green, its corners decorated with a stunning pattern of whites and gold. And, while the carpet still bore the same stunning pattern as before the colors had been matted down by excessive trampling. Now, more than the stunning masterpiece it really was, the carpet more resembled a cheap rug.

Alongside one of the walls in the room a black sofa was stood, luckily for the sofa's occupant it was of a rather tall size. The man restlessly walking around in the room fitted well into it, the colorful mess on the sofa however, did not. Edward stopped his walking for a minute and looked down at the man on the sofa, an undecipherable expression reflected in his eyes. Idiot crow, he thought as he eyed the man's ridiculous silhouette lying sprawled on the soft cushions. The red haired man had never seen the lanky figure in such a condition, and could not help but try and rethink how Jonathan Crane had managed to get himself into such a predicament that got him into this state.

Turning his back to the tall man wrapped in bandages, Edward walked up to the window. As he pulled the heavy drapers to the side a breathtaking ocean view revealed itself on the other side of the windowpane. While staring out at the sea the man slowly started to allow his mind travel back to a few days previous.

* * *

The Riddler had a few days earlier spent a rather pleasant time alone at this onshore resort.

He had recently been busy scheming and plotting on a new way to regain power after a recent Arkham Asylum prison break. Any flash of ingenuity had yet to make its way into the mind of the man, but he had managed to build up quite a reputation once again. However, every evil mind needs a rest once in a while and thus Edward had chosen to take a vacation from plotting and from his underlings, he didn't mind indulging in himself once in a while. Seeing as he could afford it.

Much to Edward's displeasure it so happened that his vacation was cut short only just as it had started, this as an unwelcome and much unexpected guest had made himself preset.

"Well if it isn't E. Nigma," A chirpy man's voice chanted from behind the redhead as he walked along the pathway leading down to the resort's outdoor bar. It took Edward less than one second to place the voice and successively he knew his day was ruined.

"Jervis, what do you want, you little pest"? He growled through gritted teeth without so much as making an attempt to turn and face the smaller man. He could hear the fool behind him make a funny humming sound followed by a scolding. Apparently the Mad Hatter found the Riddler's grumpy demeanor improper.

"Now, now, you mustn't act like such a Bandersnatch," Jervis held his hands up in defense. "Especially when I bring you interesting news". He said statement immediately made the man with the question mark cane quirk an eyebrow. What news of interest could this foolish person bring HIM, the Riddler? He demanded an answer.

"Maybe, if you are a good boy and ask me very nicely". The smaller man teased as he was able to detect the annoyance in the voice of the redhead. As expected the frown on the taller man's face deepened and the man growled silently to himself. Nonetheless, he gracefully swept around to face his visitor, partly to show his deep displeasure, partly because he was very intrigued by what news the Mad Hatter thought he would find interesting.

"Well"? Edward scoffed, his features twisted into a mask of utter displeasure. Jervis rolled his eyes.

"I told you to ask me nicely, Eddie, surely you must have misinterpreted the meaning of the last word in that sentence". He mused with some sanity, before reaching the conclusion that this was most likely as nicely as the other rouge's pride would let him ask, thus Jervis laughed and told him anyway.

"Your dear, little crow is hurt, he's close by though, so you should be able to pick him up". The blond man said with a grin. Upon hearing this Edward resisted the urge to widen his eyes in surprise and made sure his deep voice was stripped of all emotion before he answered.

"So, why should I be bothered"? He said as nonchalantly as he could, adding that the bastard crow knew how to take care of himself. Jervis had simply laughed at his statement and given a detailed explanation of where to find the man in his beaten up costume. Afterwards, Edward had ensured Jervis of that he had no intention of finding the man, a statement that was only rewarded with more laughter. When the gale of laughter finally had died down, the Mad Hatter had pretended to agree with Eddie's previous statement, which he obviously did not, and had bid him adieu.

At first the absurd ordeal had not bothered the Riddler in the slightest. He knew Crane and he was rather sure of that there were no thugs strong enough to hurt him fatally, not around these areas at least. Still, as the day grew hotter, and after consuming a fair amount of alcohol, certain scenes and images started playing inside the man's head. In reaction to this Edward simply snorted in frustration and slowly started rubbing his forehead with his right hand. However, he found it hard to relax, a fact that Eddie found extremely annoying. His vacation had been ruined.

Feeling he needed a change of scenery, Edward headed out for a stroll and as the location Jervis claimed he had seen Crane in was not too far away, Edward figured he might just as well walk there. Not that he expected to actually find the lanky man in this place, definitely not injured. Still, he figured there was no harm in going there, and if he against all odds actually found the crow injured Edward figured this would provide him with enough leverage to tease Crane for the rest of his life.

The surprise when the redhead arrived at the scene had been indescribable, everything was just as he had been told by that blond fool of a man. It was actually Jonathan Crane who lay sprawled in a weird position on the ground, looking like a bloody mess.

The man's usual Scarecrow outfit was covered with blood and dirt, the clothes worn by the lanky man were torn and through the holes his skin could be spotted. His normally pale skin was now covered with caked, dried blood and it was full of scratches, bruises and deep wounds. The almost orange hair had been colored greyish by dust as well as dried mud.

"Well you look like shit," Edward mused quietly.

* * *

A muffled moaning sound from the direction of the sofa reached Edward's ears and he abruptly let the curtains fall back into their original position. Upon finding Crane, Eddie had failed shaking some life into the bastard and this had resulted in him bringing the bloodied man back to his room and having him patched up there, leaving the injured man to rest on the sofa.

With an annoyed glare, Edward directed his eyes back at the man on the sofa but against his expectations there was no further movement, nor sound, from the man in his burlap and cotton clothes. Pathetic, the red haired thought and huffed in anger, trying to conceal the faint glimmer of worry that shone through his green eyes. Sighing, Eddie stepped a bit closer to the black sofa. No matter how much he hated the fact, he seemed incapable of letting go of the thought of what had actually had happened to the crow. Somehow Edward had imagined that the man would have been... almost invincible in his own element and with his fear gas, then again he figured that the Dark Knight had simply beaten the shit out of the Master of Fear once more.

As Edward stood there watching over his "guest", he silently pondered upon why the hell he had chosen to rescue the fool. Actually he knew the reason, he had always had a weak spot for the man, but this was a fact that Eddie liked to... forget. A grim smile spread across Edward's face as he corrected his question. Now he was wondering what the hell it was about this lanky man he found attractive or even remotely appealing, because in reality Jonathan Crane was appalling, he might've rivaled his own intellect, but nothing worth wild. To be frank, Edward considered being attracted to the crow worse than drawing a blank in the lottery of life.

Green eyes silently wandered from the man on the sofa to the burlap mask hanging on the wall close by. Snorting at the mask, he thought it was the most stupid piece of clothing he had ever spotted, even rivaling that of the Joker's ridiculous, purple outfits. Eddie could only think of one god reason as to why Crane was so attached to it, he used it to induce fear into people after he gave them his fear toxin. Other than that, Eddie was interested in the matter either.

The Riddler turned his head a fraction towards the crow and all of a sudden a grin broke loose on his face, as he found himself unable to deny that even though the other man's taste in clothes was awful there was one thing the fear inducing man could handle well. Crane was not all too bad in bed. But other than that… he was no better than when they'd first met.

His red hair fluttered around slightly as Edward shook his head to return his thoughts to the present, lingering in the past was stupid. However, had he known he had been right about not being able to forget the day he met Crane, he might have eliminated him back when he was just starting out as a rouge. Now it was too late for that, hell, he couldn't even leave the man to bleed to death, no, he had to help him. There was no denying the fact that the Riddler was taken by the bastard crow, he was well aware of that fact, but Edward would never admit this to the poor excuse of a human who was currently disturbing his precious vacation.

Even though Eddie gradually had to come to accept his own… feelings towards the other man he did not know how to define them or why they had formed in the first place. Trying to find the answer he carefully examined the man on the sofa, letting his narrowed eyes glide over the man's lanky body again and again. He could not find one spot that he thought of as overly appealing.

The red haired blamed the man on the couch for these feeling though, because if Crane just would have left him alone this would most likely never have happened. It wasn't as if the man was not good looking, he had a decent body, but he was nothing special. Eddie was pretty sure he had seen a number of persons he found better looking than the crow, not to mention people with a more refined taste in fashion, and now Eddie was not even taking the man's unusual personality into account. So why did it have to be the Master of Fear that he fell for? God, Edward had always figured that if, and only if, he would ever settle for someone, it would be someone toned down and calm, not the polar-opposite of his ideals. Growling in frustration, the Riddler started pacing around the room again.

After an age of walking around, the restless man started to feel rather fatigue and quite annoyed. Couldn't the bastard just wake up already?

Exasperated, the man finally gave up his walking and moved to stand next to the sofa again. He grabbed Crane's feet and pushed them towards the backboard of the coach, thus making room for himself to sit down. Making an attempt to lean his back against the armrest he sighed. Resting his eyes upon the face of the sleeping man, Edward realized that Jonathan looked a lot more normal when asleep, probably due to the absence of his cold eyes. Or maybe, Edward pondered, feeling slightly humored, it was the lack of mask that made him appear a lot more normal.

Based on previous experience the red haired man was rather sure of the fact that, if the Master of Fear was to wake up now he would probably be furious at the realization that he was lacking his favorite accessory. Edward figured the man would start raging about the matter already before he would have a chance to explain to the bastard crow that his precious mask was torn. However, as through a miracle Edward had managed to locate an identical, and still intact, burlap mask in Crane's pocket. Of course he had spares, Edward thought to himself. But, simply to annoy the former doctor, Eddie had chosen to not replace his mask but kept it safely hung on a hook on the wall.

Leaning his head on his hand, Edward wondered why the lanky bastard insisted on wearing the mask almost all the time when he was out of the asylum. This was a question that had crossed his mind numerous times but he had never asked the man himself. Crane would probably not share the information even if asked, and the two did not discuss personal matters, there was no need. Their relationship did not extend itself beyond the physical. Maybe the crow wanted to cover up his face, the redhead laughed to himself. Not that Eddie found the mask ugly, but whenever Crane was not wearing his mask he would squint his eyes quite a lot, making them seem rather small and peculiar. Another alternative was that Jonathan was one of those fools who believed the eyes reflected the soul. Either way, Edward still didn't care.

However, Crane's cold, almost scary eyes sure were special, the red haired man mused, and supposed he should consider himself lucky for having got the chance to see them. Then again, anyone the Master of Fear had fooled around with was probably just as privileged.

The well-dressed man leered at the other from the corner of his eye. Jonathan's chest heaved slowly up and down indicating the man was still fast asleep. His bandages would probably need a change soon, as red blotches had begun to appear on the white swaddles. Edward would prefer to wait a bit longer though, to see if the man would wake up, as this would make the process simpler. Crane was surprisingly resistant even when asleep. Tiredly, the man closed his green eyes and muttered an insult to the crow, fully aware that it would fall upon deaf ears.

* * *

**Hours Later:**

A sudden movement of the man on the couch abruptly pulled Edward back to the now, and he glanced furtively at Jonathan's face to see if he had regained consciousness, however no change in his condition could be spotted.

Not wanting to feel bored, Edward lingered in his memory for little while, damning his younger self for falling for Crane's temptations a few years back. Since that first time, Eddie had had a hard time shaking the crow off of him and trying to remove Crane from his own thoughts. Hindsight was such a bittersweet concept.

The only thing Eddie had learnt from that experience was that the only time Crane quickly removed his mask was during sex, a concept he had become familiar with more often than he had ever expected. However, time had also shown Edward what a brilliant mind the lanky man possessed, how easily he got bored and just how sadistic he could be, the only thing consistent with the man were those cold, sharp eyes of his. Oh how many times had he seen them blaze during a night of passion…

The red haired man seated on the coach hastily tore himself away from looking at the other man's closed eyelids. Edward had been free from Crane for such a long time, and finding him again only resulted in a bunch of pointless memories, memories Edward did not particularly want to relive. He was utterly frustrated with himself for not being able to block them out in a more successful manner, frustrated because he sometimes caught himself smiling to one of those memories.

Trying to calm down, Edward slowly rubbed his forehead with his gloved hand, attempting to put an end to his memory. Well that didn't last since Edward started to feel the silky material of the cushion under him move as the feet behind him stirred, trying to take more place. A soft moan could be heard from the Master of Fear and the red haired man cast his eyes in Crane's general direction. The lanky man continuously laid very still but his brow was furrowed and his eyes crinkled, as if about to open.

Finally, thought Eddie as he rose up from the black sofa, only his eyes steadily fixed on the pale man's face. Slowly, tired eyes cracked open into small slits and Crane's tussled mess of hair tardily turned from one side to another, as if the pale man tried to localize. Finally the eyes landed upon the Riddler, fixating, recognizing.

"Where's my mask, you bastard"? Jonathan croaked out, his eyes widening in surprise at the sound of his voice.

"On a hook and on the wall," Snarled Edward while gesturing with a gloved hand towards the burlap mask on the wall. The Master of Fear angled his head backwards in order to see in what direction Eddie was pointing and having located the mask the lanky man made an attempt to rise in order to retrieve it.

The red haired man observed the other in an intrigued manner, thinking to himself that there was no way Crane would make it all the way there. Apparently, Jonathan currently did not remember that he was in pain, Edward was sure of it, and his expectations were met. Crane had only taken a few trembling steps away from the black sofa before he doubled over in pain, grabbing around his rib cage in an attempt to catch his ragged breath.

Finding the sight rather humorous, Eddie let a spiteful smile spread over his features, and the displeasure the crow let show upon seeing this only made the redhead's smile even nastier.

"Shut. Up". Grumbled Jonathan causing the man standing close by to burst out in a cold, malicious, laugh.

"But I am not even saying anything," Edward sneered, his green eyes still firmly fixed on the ridiculous sight below him. Edward had to admit he enjoyed watching the man struggle, as it was something he seldom witnessed, and would most likely not see again, so he was in no hurry to help.

Growling and grumbling, Crane slowly walked towards the wall where his mask was hung and the anger in his eyes was visible. The older man, still amusedly regarding the scene in front of him, had to think long and hard to try to think of another time he had had this much fun. However, Crane, who seemed to regain his strength at an inhuman rate, managed to get hold of his beloved mask rather quickly and immediately covered up those wonderfully clear sources of emotion.

Edward, rather disappointed in how rapidly his fun was brought to an end, abruptly turned his back to the Master of Fear who was currently making his way back to the sofa, grouching all the way. Edward moved over to the window, pulling aside the heavy drapes, he had seen Jonathan act like this before, so it was not really anything to ogle at.

* * *

The luxurious looking room was bathing in a soft orange evening sunlight, making the gold lining in the carpet glimmer playfully as the last rays of sun hit it. Although, Edward made quite an effort to shut the other man out of his mind the room felt more crowded now when Crane was up and chattering away about his ruined scheme or something like that. The red haired man had made sure the bandages had been changed and had even called up some food for the incredibly skinny rouge, an offer he hadn't regretted making since his fellow rouge was in desperate need of a sandwich.

The Riddler, who was still standing by the window, glanced over at Crane who had apparently regained all of his lost vigor, and probably an extra serving of it as well, if Edward was to be the judge of the situation. He, on the other hand, felt positively exhausted. Closing his eyes, Eddie leaned his back towards the wall and in an effort to forestall an impending headache, he started rubbing his temples with small circular movements.

He needed to get rid himself of the crow before he got any sexual ideas, which around him was something Jonathan was very prone to do. Simply throwing the lanky bastard out of one of the windows sounded extremely tempting, but seeing as this would ruin the point of having Jonathan fixed up, Eddie assumed actually asking the other rouge to leave was the best option. His request however was only met by a gale of hysterical laughter.

"Why"? The crow demanded to know "It was you who brought me here and I just started to enjoy myself. Truth be told, I don't remember the last time I had a proper vacation". A malevolent smile appeared on Crane's face.

The red haired man scowled deeply and snarled to Crane that he was not visiting but gatecrashing. The crow only laughed manically, and Edward slightly assumed that all of his pain must've made him slap happy and unruly.

For a while longer, Edward mutely regarded the crow, and said crow was leering intently back at him, then sighing and shaking his head, the redhead pushed himself away from the wall.

"Look, either you leave, as I know you're fully capable of it, or then I will". He mumbled and headed for the door with long graceful strides. He did not get far though, before two thin, but yet strong and slightly muscular arms were wrapped around his waist. Eddie could feel the warmth of Crane's body as he nestled his head into the nape of Edward's neck.

This was one of the sexual ideas that the redhead had feared Jonathan would come up with.

"Crane," Riddler said warningly, but heeding no warnings, Jonathan started placing soft kisses along the nape and base of Edward's neck, thus recreating a scenario that the redhead had not known for years, and however much he would like to deny it, Edward had missed this sensation. Still, he had put in too much work to give in to the crow's temptations again; he was not Crane's toy, after all.

"You've missed it Edward, admit it". Jonathan crooned into Eddie's ear, the hot stream of air making shivers travel up along the riddle master's back. Edward bit down on his lower lip, hard, he had to fight not to let on any trace of emotion.

"You wish"!

Although the words had left Eddie's mouth with less effort than he had expected to be necessary, he could detect a flare of desperation in his own voice only hoping it had passed by unnoticed by the Master of Fear. The Riddler was on edge. His patience was wearing thin and so was his self-control. Crane was still clinging on tightly to him and to make matters worse this increased the older man's urge to give in by the second.

Mustering up the last resources of strength in his tired body, Edward burst out into a mocking laugh which momentarily astounded even his fellow rouge, making Jonathan lose focus, even if ever so slightly. Edward was not going to let this opportunity go to waste, the moment he felt the other man's hands loosen their grip, even by the slightest bit, he quickly took the chance and walked right out of Crane's warm embrace, away and out of his own hotel room.

* * *

**A happy reunion? Well not if you ask Edward.**

**Still, there's more to come in the next chapter. So until next time, my good readers!**


	2. Chapter 2

**This here folks is the continuation from the first chapter of this here story into the second chapter.**

**Well, might as well sit back and enjoy the rest of the story, people, cause it starts now.**

* * *

Edward's brain was working on overdrive and not even a drink at the outdoor bar had in the slightest been able to sooth his tired nerves. This was meant to be a vacation, not a damn experiment.

Eddie had contemplated returning to his rooms to sleep, but figuring the crow might still be lurking around he had decided against it. The man was known to be rather stubborn and Eddie did not under any circumstances want to meet him again, no exceptions. Thus, as a last resort, the redhead had fled to the resort's ridiculously large bath.

The Riddler had only to step into the room for it to empty of its other occupants, even people dressed in nothing more than their towels rapidly rushed by him, exiting the bath. Most people that Edward had run into at the resort were intimidated by him without him even putting in an effort, thus the anger written all over his face must have made an even bigger impression on the crowd. The room was empty within seconds, just as Edward preferred it to be.

At first the riddle master had only thought of getting himself a long, warm bath in order to calm his agitated nerves, but when passing by the sauna he suddenly felt overpowered by an urge to enter, just for a while. His muscles were sore from all the pacing and the tension would just not ease its grip on them, and being able to vaguely recall Poison Ivy having said something about saunas having a positive effect on these sorts of problems he resolutely pushed the heavy glass door open, stepping into the heated room.

The room he entered was dimly lit and the air floating around was thick and heavily laden with moist. Upon entering the man had found the change in the air a slight nuisance, as it made breathing harder, but as he got adjusted he thought no more of it. After all, he had spent many years hiding out in the sleaziest parts of the slums to evade the GCPD, so withstanding heat should be no problem.

The man slowly made his way to the far end of the room, the steam floating around in the area swirling as he passed by. The walls and floors, as well as the benches in the sauna, were a mix of tiles in different shades of gray, and contrary to how they looked, they actually warmed Eddie's cold skin as he sat down in a corner of the room. Sitting down he realized that he could see no more than a few meters in each direction, this due to that the thick steam pressing itself into every corner of the room, not leaving even a square centimeter exposed.

Tiredly, the redhead let the back of his head rest against the gray wall, and for the first time in days, Edward felt as if he was truly able to relax. He was finally able to enjoy a moment of sheer and uninterrupted tranquility. In other words, his mind at last forgot to preoccupy itself with Crane. Edward breathed in deeply and then, slowly, he pushed the air out of his lungs, causing the layers of steam floating around in the room to stir. Now if I only had a cold drink, Edward thought as he felt the first small droplets of sweat roll down his white skin.

The answer to his prayers appeared faster than he could have imagined, though not in the form he would have preferred. The door to the sauna creaked open and a familiar voice rang through the room.

"Edward, is this where you've been hiding"?

The Riddler had to put in extreme effort not to lash out at the Master of Fear in that very instant. Crane was standing in the doorway with nothing but a towel sloppily draped around his waist and the bandages around his rib cage. With something of a grin on his face, the man lifted his hands up in the air, and in those hand he held two big bottles of beer.

"Why are you here"? Eddie growled in a voice laced with anger and brought up his hand to his face to start massage it in a futile attempt to ease his frustration. He could not understand how the younger man always managed to find him when he sought to be apart from him, and the fact that the crow now also managed to bring something that he actually desired aggravated him even further. By now Crane had reached Eddie's side and promptly he seated his towel wrapped body only a few inches apart, nonchalantly turning towards the red haired man.

"Calm down, I am here to strike a deal with you". Crane assured and handed over one of the two bottles in his hand to his fellow rouge. The latter grabbed it without further though, directing all his attention to the crow, a slightly pensive expression etched on his face. Edward knew from experience that Jonathan was an expert at striking deals with brutes in order to get them to his dirty work, and he was well aware of the fact that those deals, more often than not, turned out in the favor of the Scarecrow. Impatiently, Edward sized up the crow while waiting for him to state whatever was on his mind.

Jonathan's pale body was already starting to become covered with droplets of sweat, some of which were making their way in under the man's bandages. Unable to tear his eyes away from Crane's lanky figure, Edward silently mused that the sauna could impossibly do any good for the younger, not that he was going to warn him, Crane deserved to suffer.

Gradually, Edward let his eyes travel upwards, recalling every detail of the slightly muscular, pale body he had not seen in years. He continued this process until his eyes eventually reached the level of the other man's eyes, and not before then did the red haired man realize his mistake. He had spent way to long regarding the other. Jonathan grinned wider than he would normally would and his white teeth shone brighter than the whitish steam surrounding them, making Edward wonder what kind of punishment he would receive for letting himself loose command for even a few seconds.

"Irresistible, isn't it," The man beamed, gesturing at his body. Then, crinkling his eyebrows, he added that the bandages, though, were an eyesore. Ignoring the other rouge's comment, Edward decided to turn back to the matter at hand and huffed at the crow that he better hurry and get to the point already. As Crane still didn't reply the riddle master bitterly added it was either that or then the man could simply get lost, hoping that Crane would actually not heed his advice so that he once again could go back to enjoying solitude. However, upon hearing this, Crane was quick to hum in approval and did not waste another second.

"Let's make a bet and if I win we're going to have sex". The pale man stated casually.

At that statement Edward's mind went blank for a few seconds and when getting back to his sense he was silently wondering just what the hell was wrong with this man. Sighing, Edward tried to find the word to express his disdain for this bet and its prize, when it suddenly dawned on him that Jonathan had not even stated the bet itself, just the price. Grumbling, he told the crow that he could not agree on a bet without knowing the circumstances.

"Hmm, you mean you might lose if you don't know what it is all about". The other rouge grinned back at him and Edward could feel a vein in his neck throbbing; his blood was boiling with rage. Just who did this crow take him for? Him afraid? Never. Thus, with a dry laugh, the Riddler accepted the challenge.

"Haha, you never cease to amuse me, Eddie. Maybe you really want me, after all". Jonathan chuckled to himself, making Edward tremble with rage. He just had to win this one challenge, and then the bastard would leave him alone, forever. The red haired man had to repeat this mantra to himself at least a couple of ten times before he could muster up enough calm to speak to the crow again.

"Fine, but WHEN I win, you will promise to leave me alone, bastard". He grunted and Jonathan nodded, silently accepting the condition. "That is forever, Crane". He added warningly but there was no change in the other man's face and Edward figured the Master of Fear still thought himself to be unbeatable at the hands of the Riddler.

"So, then let's start the sauna-challenge," Crane said, his voice echoing through the steamy room.

Sauna-challenge? The red haired man was at a loss of words, how could one such as Crane could think of such a moronic name for such a ridiculous idea...?

Sometimes Edward would give quite a lot to just get a peek inside that crooked mind of the crow, just to see what was going on inside there. However, seeing as he already had happened to accept the challenge he supposed he had no choice but to beat the other rouge, it couldn't be too hard, it was just a sauna challenge, after all.

* * *

**13 minutes:**

Edward grumbled to himself as he swallowed the last few lukewarm drops of alcohol, cursing it for disappearing so fast, as it had been a good way to shut out the interminable chain of words that was pouring out from the mouth of Crane. He'd never taken the man for a blabbermouth, but he guessed that driven to boredom, Crane would become one.

Now dark thoughts were again clouding the redhead's mind as he in stillness wondered how anyone possibly could have so much nonsense about fear, Batman's secret identity, or fear toxins to talk about, or why Jonathan imagined anyone would be interested in it. Still, there was no use in telling him to shut up either as Jonathan was the type to ignore those kinds of comments.

"Edward, you're frowning again... You should smile more,". The intrusive voice cut of Edward's chain of thought and he looked to his side. The other rouge was closer than before, a realization that made Edward scowl even deeper.

"You aren't even listening! Have you even heard a single word that I've said"? Jonathan complained and started pulling at Edward's cheeks. The riddle master felt absolutely mortified and before he could even think of a better reaction he had swung his fist at the other man, sending him flying across the room. All this much to Edward's own surprise as well, as he usually behaved far more composed than this. Still, he couldn't help but let a satisfactory and spiteful smile breach his lips though, as he heard the Master of Fear hit the gray stonewall with a slight crash.

Laughter soon cut through the room as Jonathan picked himself up from the floor and started walking back towards his former seat, grabbing the black towel he had dropped on the way.

"Well I hope you're happy with your dirty tricks. You're such a bastard at times, Eddie". He scowled.

"Oh I'm sorry," Edward chuckled, sarcasm dripping off of his words. "Would you like a kiss to make it feel better"?

"Shut up," Crane snapped back at him.

Slumping back down next to Edward, Crane started fumbling with his bandages, again mumbling over how much discomfort they caused him. Eddie emitted a tired sigh as he pointed out to the crow that fingering the bandages only would cause more damage, he even suggested the other man leave the sauna, but his words had little effect. The Master of Fear had only shrugged and concluded that Edward was in need for a change of tactics if he wanted to win this bet.

Dissatisfied with mostly everything, the red haired man focused his green orbs on the misty, white mass. Jonathan was acting like baby and an idiot, there was no cure for it, but Edward hated the way he let the other rouge's comments get to him. Edward also hated the fact that Jonathan, and him alone, could make him lose all sense of self-control.

* * *

**1 hour:**

And Crane was still chattering nonstop, apparently he was explaining the high quality of his fear toxin and its capabilities, Edward couldn't be less interested at the time being.

"The game of fear suits me, doesn't it, Eddie"? Jonathan asked him.

It took a while for Edward to really realize that he just had been asked this stupid question, and when having done so he moved on to ponder upon why he should even bother himself with such an idiotic statement. The answer was as clear as day, but it seemed that Crane wanted his input. However, as the crow turned out to be a fair bit more persistent than the older man had expected, he soon found himself looking for an answer simply in order to get the other to shut up, if even for a few seconds.

"Well..." Edward started and then he drifted off. What the hell was he supposed to say about fear toxin? It causes fear?! What else was there to be said? Nothing!

"Well what"? The crow nagged and Edward cursed him under his breath, clouded eyes shooting annoying looks in the other man's direction, but despite his efforts, Jonathan's voice showed no signs of going away.

At this point, it was a mystery to Edward how Crane managed to simply overlook all criticism directed at him. At one point the older man had thought the crow simply ignored everything directed at him, but when realizing that compliments, or the likes of some, were sponged up immediately, he had begun to wonder. He wanted that ability as well.

"Of course fear suits the Master of Fear, that's a stupid question". The redhead finally concluded his voice arrogant and sarcastic. Jonathan, on the other hand, seemed to give him a sadistic grin. If it was out of joy, Edward had no clue at this point.

The Riddler slapped his palm over his face and slowly tilted his head back, eyes staring through his fingers up at the steam covered ceiling. He cursed the crow, again, extremely annoyed at the fact that Crane knew exactly what buttons to push in order to get a reaction from him. The riddle master bet his whole fortune on the sole fact that the crow was doing this only to wind him up so he would leave the sauna in sheer frustration, but Edward was not going to let the crow have it his way. Edward just hoped that Jonathan would not be able to stand the heat for too much longer, because he had to admit, his patience was wearing thin, very thin.

A moment later, Crane looked back to Edward and the older man rapidly caught on to the fact that the crow was panting. Nonchalantly, turning his head slightly to Jonathan's direction he could spot fresh stains of blood on the larger man's bandages. Why is he acting like such an idiot?

* * *

**4 hours:**

And the conversation was still going strong, or at least Crane's monologue was. Edward, on the other hand, was at his limit. He needed to shut the other man up or he was soon to lose his freedom. He did not feel like becoming Crane's test subject slash toy again, he had already experienced that and once was far more than enough.

"Why the hell were you hurt anyway? Last time I saw you, I vaguely recall that you said you wouldn't let the Batman get the better of you again". Edward suddenly asked, he deeply felt he needed a change of topic.

He was beyond tired of hearing about Jonathan's never-ending experiments and toxins. Furthermore, Edward did not wish to learn to know the countless screams from the women and men that Jonathan had tested. However, he was somewhat interested in knowing how the Batman beat the shit out of him. It could turn out to be useful blackmail in the future.

The crow closed his mouth, but that sadistic smile of his remained intact.

"Oh, that..." Jonathan started, a thoughtful expression settling over his face, or at least as far as Edward could tell it was such an expression. It was hard to tell with the crow sometimes since his face didn't really show that many expressions.

"Well, what"? The Riddler snapped. The other rouge took no notice but simply eyed him calmly. His sudden calm behavior made Edward slightly hesitant and he wondered just what kind of mess he had caused now, and upon realizing a fit of anger swiftly flashed through his head. In a matter of seconds, he had managed to invert his and the crow's roles. A startling discovery to say the least and not one that Edward was very proud of. This was exactly what Jonathan wanted, he wanted Edward to plead to him.

The sadistic smile taking form on the taller man's lips told him that his deduction was spot on, and Edward couldn't even put in words how badly he wanted to wipe that expression from the other's face. He would even go as far as utilizing violence, he thought, if it only would have the desired effect. But, seeing as Edward was after all a rather sophisticated man he settled for a more discreet method, even though the sound of his fist in Jonathan's face sounded ridiculously tempting to him. Anyhow, he would not sink to that level once again.

"Never mind," Eddie grunted and turned away from the other man with the bloody bandages. He didn't need any help in figuring out how to rid himself from the Master of Fear, he could manage if he wanted to, and right now all he had to do was to win this pathetic sauna contest. He would settle with that for now.

"I was bored and attempted to make some test subjects of mine suffer, it did not turn out as I had... suspected". Jonathan resolved, completely ignoring what Edward previously had said. The red haired man groaned with frustration as the other rouge had again done the exact opposite to what he had aimed for.

It was not but after a few minutes of silence that Edward actually started trying to process what had just reached his ears, and at first he thought he must have misheard because not even the Scarecrow could be that stupid. He slowly, slowly twisted his head back in the direction of the other man, his green eyes carefully scrutinizing every inch of that pale face. Then, without warning, Edward nimbly snapped his head back into its previous position, he couldn't stand looking at such a deplorable excuse for a man any longer. The serious expression on Jonathan's face had settled the matter.

"Why would you even do that if you knew that it would attract the Dark Knight"? Edward mumbled more to himself than to the tall and pale man.

"I told you, I was bored," Jonathan stated, as if that would be a valid explanation for one such as the Riddler.

Why me of all people? Edward thought and stroked his moist red hair back, away from his face, mentally wishing that the crow would go off to pester someone else.

* * *

**7 hours:**

The sauna was growing ever hotter and the air ever thicker and stuffier. By now, Edward had lost track of time and he was hoping that Jonathan would be ready to give in soon, as this wasn't much of an enjoyment anymore. His hair was dripping with sweat and the towel wrapped around his hips was soaking, making it somewhat uncomfortable. In the corner of his eye, he could see the pale man pulling at the all more bloodstained white cloth. His efforts were thwarted though.

"You're probably doing more harm than use," Edward stated dryly, his eyes tranquilly regarding those long, pale fingers dexterously working their way around the bandages. His comment seemed to land upon deaf ears though, as the counter-question directed at Edward had nothing to do with bandages.

"Hmm, Eddie, wouldn't you like to date me"? Jonathan exclaimed and Edward felt his mind get clouded with far darker thoughts than he had ever thought possible. Not only had the man completely ignored his question, but he had asked something so outrageously obvious, the answer was simple.

"No"! Edward curtly declared.

"But why? You never give me a reason to why not"! Jonathan snapped back at him. At this, Edward couldn't contain himself and he laughed lazily. Oh how naïve youth was, the Riddler thought, not that the Master of Fear was that much younger than him, but at times it sure seemed so.

"Isn't it obvious, Crane? The sole fact that it is you asking should be an answer that is satisfying enough"! Eddie snorted, mouth twisted into a wicked grin.

"Cruel, as always," Grunted the taller man, still grinning sadistically, but saying no more.

Satisfied, the red haired man figured that this ought to have shut the crow up, at least for now. Still, Edward wondered how many times the fear inducing bastard would try this line before giving up. Edward was not blind to the truth, he knew Crane spent every free moment obsessed with something or multiple things, and that alone was reason enough to decline.

Sighing in exasperation, Edward waved his hand in an attempt to cool down, and in the process dispelling his thoughts on Crane. All he had to do was concentrate on winning this stupid wager.

* * *

**11 hours:**

By now the sauna was extremely hot, Edward estimated it to be approximately 122 °F, and he could almost feel his skin burning. The sweat was forming a large amount of small round droplets all over Edward's brow, some rolling down his cheek, some getting stuck in his eyebrows on the way down.

He'd had spent the last few hours puzzling over what to do when he got back from his vacation, and when he had grown tired of that he had started pondering upon just what he should do during the rest of his vacation once he got rid of the crow.

After a few more moments of leisurely thinking, Edward started to wonder how he had actually managed to get this much thinking done, obviously it was due to the stillness of the other rouge, but for him to be this quiet was unheard of. Slightly alarmed, he shot a glance in the direction of the pale man only to confirm what he had dreaded. Jonathan laid outstretched on the bench next to Edward, motionless and his skin a tone redder than usual. It took Edward quite a while to detect the faint movement of the pale chest as it struggling made its way up and fell back down again.

The pale man raised an eyebrow, an amused expression taking hold of his features. Stupid crow, drinking alcohol in a sauna when suffering from severe blood loss, Edward thought to himself. Jonathan had been bound to lose from the start.

Hoisting the Master of Fear up on his shoulder, Edward reckoned that this day might not turn out too bad after all.

* * *

**Yep, that's the end for this chapter, so until the next chapter, my good readers!**


End file.
